In the late summer of 2007, a 32-year-old Indigenous mother named Bonnie Marie Joseph was on the verge of a significant life change. She was working diligently to regain custody of her five children and had a crucial court date scheduled in Prince George, British Columbia. On the afternoon of September 8, 2007, she was seen by her cousin in the small town of Vanderhoof. Bonnie, who did not own a car, was known to travel between Fort St.
James, Vanderhoof, and Prince George, and on this day, she was reportedly hitchhiking to make it to her important appointment the following morning. Friends and family said she was in good spirits and determined, having never missed a single court date in her fight to be reunited with her children. This trip, however, was different; Bonnie never arrived at her destination and was never seen or heard from again.
It wasn't until three months later, in December 2007, that Bonnie's aunt officially reported her missing to the Fort St. James RCMP. Her family insists that her disappearance was highly out of character, especially given how close she was to having her children back in her care. Adding to the mystery, sometime after she vanished, her wallet and ID, which contained an uncashed cheque, were discovered near a lake. This finding was turned over to the authorities, but it has not led to any breakthroughs in her case. While her family holds onto the memory of a mother fighting for her children, law enforcement has noted that she led a high-risk lifestyle, which included a history of drug addiction and frequent hitchhiking, making her vulnerable.
The investigation into Bonnie Marie Joseph's disappearance, now handled by the Prince George RCMP, remains open but has grown cold over the years with no significant leads. At the time she went missing, Bonnie, a member of the Yekooche First Nation, was described as being 5'4' tall and weighing 120 pounds, with short brown hair and brown eyes. She had a distinctive tattoo of an 'X' with dots across the knuckles of her left hand. Her case is one of many that haunt the notorious stretch of highway in northern British Columbia known as the Highway of Tears, where numerous women, predominantly Indigenous, have gone missing or been found murdered. The overview of Bonnie's case is a heartbreaking story of a mother who vanished while trying to reunite her family, leaving behind a painful and enduring mystery for her loved ones and community.Last Seen: Sep 8, 2007
